It sounds menacing, but a super blue blood moon actually gets its catchy name from a perfect storm of lunar occurrences. The next one is coming Jan. 31. There will be no werewolves, but there will be a spectacular celestial sight on tap for moon watchers.

Let's pull that name apart. A supermoon happens when a full moon is at its closest point in orbit to Earth (also known as perigee). A blue moon is the name given to a second full moon within a calendar month. We already logged a supermoon on Jan. 1. A blood moon happens during a total lunar eclipse when the moon takes on a reddish hue.

The lunar eclipse will be visible in parts of North America, Australia, the Middle East, Asia and Russia. You can consult NASA's total lunar eclipse map to find out if and when it will be viewable at your location.

Johnston's delightful moon blog covers all the other names associated with this particular Jan. 31 moon: the long night moon, the wolf moon, the snow moon, the ice moon, the old moon or the moon After yule. Whatever you want to call it, it should be beautiful to behold.

First published Jan. 19., 10:13 a.m. PT. Update, Jan. 27 at 9:52 a.m. PT: Adds link to information on how to see the moon in person or online.